by JA Low
“You’re too kind,” I tell her because really, they all are. “I have some ideas which are different from my old style, I guess.” They all nod and lean forward to listen some more, and the more margaritas I drink, the looser my lips become.
“I can’t believe he took everything,” Isla growls.
“And a fitness model, too. How cliché,” Vanessa adds.
“I had no idea.” Shrugging my shoulders. “He told me on the way to the meeting with the network, where he presented his new solo project right in front of me.”
A whole pile of cusses comes from the girls.
“You’re better off without him,” Sienna tells me.
The night ended up pretty much in a blur as the margaritas continued to flow.
13
Sebastien
After saying farewell to my friends, I get a very drunk Quinn into my car to take her home.
“I love your friends,” she tells me, resting her head back against the car seat.
“They loved you, too,” I tell her as I buckle myself in.
“They’re on Team Quinn.” She waves her hand in the air. “They think Chad is a dick.”
Her words just make me smile.
“They also think I should sleep with you,” Quinn confesses, which nearly has me hitting the breaks in shock. “Maybe they’re right,” she muses. “They said I needed a rebound, and that you’re good at those.” Gee, thanks, friends. “But I told them that I’m too… what did you say to me…” she frowns as she tries to find the right words, “… I’m too inexperienced,” she whisper-yells the words to me.
“That’s not what I meant.” I’m arguing with a drunk woman, and she just waves my comment away.
“Just because Chad…” She scrunches up her nose at the mention of his name like she’s smelling something off. “Just because Chad is the only man I’ve slept with doesn’t mean I don’t know things, you know.” She pokes me in the arm with her pointy finger. “Oooh, you’re hard.” Her hand wraps around my arm, squeezing it. “How often do you work out? You’re a chef. You’re not meant to be this hard.” She keeps poking my arm. “Chefs are supposed to have fat tummies.” She tries to reach for my stomach.
“Now...” When her hand touches me, I almost crash the car. “Maybe we should keep our hands to ourselves while in the car.”
She lets out a huff. “I bet a gigolo would let me touch him while he was driving,” she muses.
What in the hell is she talking about?
“I should really book one in before I go. Get that first rebound sex over and done with. Maybe that way I don’t have to finish myself off with my vibrator when he’s done like I had to do with Chad.”
“You don’t need to pay for sex, Quinn.”
“Um… yes, I do. It’s easier than picking up some random, and then he goes and tells his story to the press.”
Well, she certainly has a point there.
“What about a male friend… no-strings-attached sex.”
She shakes her head. “Not sure if I’m a friend with benefits kind of girl,” she states beside me.
“But you’re a pay someone kind of girl.”
“Hey.” She sits up and turns her attention to me. “Don’t be a Mr. Judgey McJudgeyson. I think it’s more respectable than picking up some random at a nightclub.” Her eyes narrow in on me. “That might be your M.O., but it’s not mine.” She sits back in a huff and crosses her arms in front of her.
“It might surprise you, Miss Judgey McJudgeyson, that I don’t pick up women in nightclubs. That’s not my M.O. either,” I set her straight.
“You don’t need a nightclub. You have a private dining room.”
I don’t reply because that’s exactly my M.O.
“Oh… burgers! Stop,” she screams while pointing to a burger joint on the opposite side of the road. Turning the car around, we head on over and order up a feast. As soon as she gets the meal, she starts shoving fries into her mouth like a starving person. We aren’t far from Lettie’s house where she’s staying, so it doesn’t take long until I pull into her driveway and stop.
“You want to come in and eat your takeout?” she asks. Those doe eyes flutter at me.
I should say no.
“Lettie’s away for the weekend,” she adds.
Even more reason why I should be getting home.
“Okay,” I reply.
I’m an Idiot.
Parking my car, I grab my bag of American heart attack food and follow her inside. Lettie has a gorgeous home. It’s a typical Hollywood Hills bachelorette pad, all sleek and modern with views over the city.
Quinn pulls up a seat outside on the large daybed, and I take a seat beside her. She kicks off her heels and crawls up, laying back, shoving some fries into her mouth. Then she unwraps her burger and takes a humungous bite.
“Oh my goodness, this is good.” She moans around her mouthful.
I take a bite of my burger and curse every single one. I notice she’s watching me, then bursts out laughing. “You hate it, right?” she asks.
“It hurts my soul.”
“Snob.” She giggles, popping a few more fries in her mouth.
“You do realize who you’re sitting with, don’t you?” I jokingly ask her.
“Chef extraordinaire, Mr. Sebastien Sanchez,” she mocks. “The bad-boy chef of Spain.” She wiggles her eyebrows, making me roll my eyes. “How many women have you slept with?” she asks.
The question catches me totally off guard, and I choke on my burger. “What kind of question is that?” I ask, trying to breathe.
“A genuine one.” She gives me those doe eyes again, looking all innocent and sweet, and yet all I can think about is lying her back against this daybed and making her forget her loser ex.
“I don’t know… I don’t keep count. A lot.” Shrugging my answer, I stuff some fries in my mouth to hopefully get out of answering any more of her questions, but she’s relentless.
“Is a lot like over fifty, over a hundred, over a thousand?” she pushes.
“Do you really want to know?” Frowning at her, she thinks this over for a couple of beats.
“Yeah.” She nods.
“I’m guessing more like over the fifty mark, but I don’t really know.”
“Wow. I guess… wow… okay… I understand your nickname now.” She shrugs.
“I’m not that guy anymore,” I tell her.
“Doesn’t bother me if you are.” She takes another bite of her burger.
Why does that comment bother me?
“Men and women look at sex differently,” I add.
“If you give me the whole Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus spiel, I’m going to punch you in the guts.” I shut my mouth and don’t say anything more. We lay back against the daybed and look out over the twinkling lights of LA.
“Are you going to miss anything about this place?” she asks, sleepily.
“My friends.”
“That’s all? Not your restaurant?” She turns to look at me.
“Don’t get me wrong, I love my restaurant, but the network had a lot more to say over it than I wanted.”
“Oh…” She lays her head back but still looks at me.
“Yeah. I kind of signed away everything on this deal, thinking it was what I wanted.”
“But you didn’t have any control,” she adds.
I nod my head in agreement. “It felt like a sellout. I never thought I’d be that guy, and there I was becoming everything I said I never wanted to be.” I haven’t told anyone that before.
“I get that.” She gives me a genuine smile. “That’s why going back to Spain is such a big deal, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Looks like we are both going to Spain to find ourselves, then.”
Yeah, she’s right, hadn’t thought about it like that.
“Guess we are,” I agree.
14
Quinn
My head feels like it’s been hit by a truck.
Why is it so cold and warm at the same time?
Did I leave a fan on high last night?
Why is it so breezy?
Opening my eyes, I notice a tanned arm wrapped around me.
What the hell? Sebastien!
“Wake up.” Pushing his arm off me, he rolls over on a groan.
“Where the hell am I?” He sits up and tries to orient himself.
“Looks like we fell asleep on the daybed last night.”
He looks around with a very confused look on his face. “Oh.” Then he looks me up and down, then himself.
“No, we did not sleep with each other.” Shaking my head, I get up off the bed.
“I should go.” He jumps off the bed too.
“This doesn’t have to be awkward. Nothing happened,” I tell him. He nods his head. “You’re more than welcome to stay or go. It’s up to you.” Putting the ball firmly in his court, I nod.
“You want me to stay?”
“The network sent through some promotion stuff for us to use yesterday, and I thought maybe we could run through it together.”
“Oh, okay.”
“The guest bedroom is down the hall to the left. There’s fresh towels and a shower if you want to use it.”
“Thanks. That would be great.” Sebastien turns on his heels and heads to the guest room. Thankfully, I’m in the opposite direction.
After having the best shower of my life, I walk out to the most delicious smelling food, and my stomach instantly rumbles. Turning the corner, the last thing I expected to see is Sebastien in the kitchen half-naked.
Oh, man. He hasn’t noticed me yet, so I take in the pure pornographic scene before me. I watch in fascination as his muscles ripple across his tanned back while he works. His jeans are slung low on his hips, showing off the male dimples that sit right above his perfect ass.
Sebastien Sanchez in clothes is hot, but out of them, he’s totally combustible.
“Hope you’re hungry?” Sebastien calls out, surprising me.
How the hell did he know I was there?
He turns around with a spatula in his hand and a devilish grin. I make my way over to the breakfast bar and take a seat, then he slides a perfect omelet onto my plate. “Did you enjoy the view?” He grins, resting his elbows on the counter.
“Don’t know what you’re talking about?”
“The backsplash is mirrored, so I could see you standing there watching me.” His left eyebrow twitches up and down.
“I don’t think you need me to stroke your ego,” I bite back.
“It wouldn’t mind a little stroking every now and again.” He grins.
I pick up the dishcloth on the counter and throw it at him, which just makes him laugh. Not wasting any more time, I grab a fork and dig in.
“Oh my God.” I am drooling over the most amazing omelet I have ever tasted.
“Good, huh?” Sebastien gives me a knowing grin.
“You know it is.” Shoving another delicious bite into my mouth, I keep going until I’m completely full. “Okay, so that was amazing.”
Picking up the plates, he takes them to the sink. “I aim to please,” he tells me as he places the eggs back into the refrigerator, which makes me roll my eyes.
Sebastien helps me clean the kitchen before we head into the dining room and run through what the producers have sent through to me. I open the computer, and he sits down beside me a little too closely.
“These are some of the sponsors’ products,” I state while opening a million and one PDFs filled with product endorsements.
“Oh, wow, okay.” Looking very overwhelmed, he makes me laugh.
“I have some storyboard ideas instead. They might be easier to see the concept than looking at individual products,” I explain to him.
Clicking on the files, I open my digital storyboards. “These might change because I’ve only seen photos of the buildings, but I want to make sure we are on the same page. Because after the show and I have left, I want you to love it.”
So, for the next couple of hours, we talk about his vision until we are exhausted.
“I think that’s a great start,” I state while closing down my computer.
“And you think you can match our ideas with the sponsors’ products?” he asks.
“Of course. Also, you can always change it if you don’t like it once we have all left,” I remind him.
“I trust you,” he tells me.
Aw, I felt that compliment all the way to my toes.
“I should probably go. I’m leaving in a couple of days.”
Oh, that’s right, he’s going over there earlier than me. We get up and head toward the door.
“Thanks for today.” He turns as he reaches the front door. “And for last night.” He grins.
“I had fun on both occasions,” I tell him truthfully.
He nods but hesitates to leave, his hand staying on the door handle for a couple of moments before he shakes his head and opens the door.
“Hey…” I run after him. “I’m not going to see you for a couple of weeks.” So, I hold my arms open for him.
“True.” He smiles, moving toward me. I wrap my arms around his neck as he wraps himself around me, holding me tightly against his chest. His lips press against the crook of my neck, sending tiny shockwaves over my body. I swallow hard. The hug continues a little longer than one might deem appropriate. Eventually, we pull away from each other.
“Have a safe flight.” My legs are shaky after our hug.
“I’ll see you soon.”
As I watch him slide into his car, I wave goodbye until he’s a speck on the horizon.
It’s for the best nothing happened.
It would only complicate things once I arrive in Spain.
I need to get some new batteries.
Actually, I think I’m going to need a lot of them.
15
Sebastien
“You’re home.” My mama rushes up and pulls me into her arms. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other. “I’ve missed you so much.” She squishes my face.
“Sweetheart, leave him alone. He’s a grown man,” my father chastises her, but she simply waves him off. “Welcome home, son.” He pulls me into a bear hug.
“I’ve cooked all your favorite things,” she tells me. “You look so skinny.” She rubs my taut stomach. “You haven’t been looking after yourself in America.”
“Mama,” I groan.
I don’t think it matters how old you are, you will still be a child in your mother’s eyes.
“I’m fine. Just been working out, that’s all.”
She tuts and tells me to follow her into the living room, where she has all my favorite foods laid out for me. My mouth waters at the aromas circling the room, so I close my eyes and inhale the homely scent. A sense of calm washes over me, and I realize now where I’m supposed to be.
Here.
Home.
Spain.
“Where is he?” My brother’s voice echoes through my family’s villa. “Hey, dickhead.” Joaquin, my brother, enters the room.
“Language,” my father chastises my younger brother.
“Sorry, Papi.” He grins.
It’s been ages since I’ve seen my youngest brother.
“Hey, you.” Standing, I embrace him. “It’s been too long.”
My youngest brother is a celebrity in his own right. He’s a Spanish soap star in Ama a tu Vecino, which translates to, Love Thy Neighbor, and he’s a singer. You think I’m the bad-boy playboy of the family, then you’re totally wrong. My youngest brother has me beat.
“I’m surprised you’ve been able to take the time out of your busy day to say hello to your brother.”
“I was kind of hoping your hot co-star would be with you.” He looks over my shoulder, and I punch him playfully in the stomach.
“Don’t you dare,” I warn him.
He frowns, then smiles, unsure if I’m joking or not. I’m
not sure if I am either. I mean, if Quinn is interested in Joaquin, then I guess I can’t really stand in her way because I don’t have any claim over her. However, I know my younger brother, and he’s after a little no-strings-attached fun.
“Stop fighting, you two, and come sit down,” Mama yells.
We spend the rest of the day catching up on lost time.
“It’s strange being back,” I say while walking into my old apartment in one of the hip suburbs of Barcelona named Gràcia. It’s bohemian, casual, loads of culture, and a great little neighborhood full of restaurants. No one cares who you are here.
“You’ve been gone a long time, Seb,” my brother tells me.
“I know.” Letting out a heavy sigh, I drop my bags by the front door and look around at my old life. In the last two years, I’ve changed, it seems, and I didn’t even realize it.
“It’s good to have you back.” My brother slaps me on the back.
He opens the refrigerator and pulls out a couple of beers, and before I can say anything, Joaquin fills me in, “Mama filled it up.”
Of course, she did.
I take the cool bottle from my brother’s hand, and we head to the rooftop terrace. The sun is setting over the city, and you can see all the way to the ocean. It’s perfect. We clink our bottles together and drink in relative silence for a couple of moments.
“So, you going to tell me about your co-star?” He turns and gives me a knowing smile.
“Nothing has happened nor will happen,” I tell him, enjoying the sights, sounds, and smells of my home.
“But you want something to happen?” he pushes as his dark green eyes glare at me, but I don’t answer him. “I’ve seen photos of her. She’s hot.” He grins. “And I saw photos of you two together at your network thing, too,” he adds.
“So.”
“So?” His voice raises in a question. “Come on, Seb, I know you.”
“Fine. She’s attractive, but she’s a nice girl.”
My brother chuckles. “Too nice for you, is that what you’re saying?” He turns to look at me.
